Back in January, supporters of a public-private initiative to build a new community pool at Byram Park pulled out all the stops to convince town officials it was time to commit funding to the project.

Wearing Panama hats and bearing a graham cracker mockup of the facility, they presented officials with 3-inch-thick binders filled with letters of support for the pool project. But in the end, it wasn't enough to convince the Board of Estimate and Taxation, whose budget committee rejected $150,000 for the pool's design.

Several months later and entering a new budget cycle, it doesn't appear many minds have changed.

The pool project, which is projected to cost more than $7 million, would go unfunded under the latest version of the BET Budget Committee's draft budget guidelines, and few of the BET's members voice support for devoting dollars to a new pool anytime soon.

Joseph Pellegrino, the budget committee's chairman, said the board needs more information on the project as it juggles other major capital expenditures. The biggest-ticket items are the Greenwich High School music instruction space and auditorium project, known as MISA, the central fire station and renovation of the town-owned Nathaniel Witherell nursing home.

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Divided over Byram pool
Greenwich Time reached out to all 12 members of the Board of Estimate and Taxation and the three selectmen to get their positions on the BET Budget Committee's draft budget guidelines, which do not currently include funds for the Byram pool project. Here are their responses:
Board of Estimate and Taxation
Arthur Norton (R): "The understanding was that the Junior League was going to get more information and talk about whether it's viable going forward."
BET Budget Committee Chairman Joseph Pellegrino (R): "Clearly the draft guidelines for the capital model does not have new capital projects in it such as the Byram pool."
Leslie Tarkington (R): "It may not have, in my opinion, the same type of priority when we have a tight budget."
BET Chairman Michael Mason (R): "We said a $7 million capital project right now might not be the best time with the things we have over our head."
Sean Goldrick (D): "I am supportive of this project and want to build something we can all be proud of."
William Finger (D): "I haven't really seen anything on the project other than what was given to us conceptually."
Robert Brady (D): "It's a good project, but there are a lot of projects the town has."
Randall Huffman (D): "As far as I am concerned this is a worthy project."
Marc Johnson (R): Deferred comment to BET Chairman Michael Mason
Greg Bedrosian (R): Did not respond to messages seeking comment
Mary Lee Kiernan (D): Did not respond to messages seeking comment
Jeffrey Ramer (D): Declined to comment
Board of Selectmen
First Selectman Peter Tesei (R): "There are limits to what our taxpayers can fund."
David Theis (R): "I would love to see the pool project unfold in its original form. However, in today's world, dollars are tight. If it has to be downsized, it has to be downsized."
Drew Marzullo (D): "I have been an outspoken advocate for a new pool in Byram, but we need to now look and move forward and evaluate capital expenses that need to be funded as a whole."

"(The pool is) not in the proposed capital budget, but that doesn't mean we're not following a process of understanding, scoping out the project, trying to come to terms with (it)," the Republican said. "We are still working on it and we're taking a very logical, systematic approach."

The current pool in Byram Park is the only public facility of its kind in Greenwich. The pool is leaking water through cracks; the facility has no restroom facilities; and it can accommodate only 40 swimmers. Using a combination of private donations and town money, the project's supporters hope to build a 6,000-square-foot pool that can hold up to 300 swimmers.

Most BET members and selectmen said the other capital projects, including the as-yet-unknown cost of cleaning up contaminated soil at GHS, should take priority over a new pool in Byram Park.

Though First Selectman Peter Tesei said he supports the pool concept -- he included the $150,000 for the design in his previous budget before the BET Budget Committee denied it -- he stressed that the town must handle other major undertakings first.

"My priority in going forward this year is to ensure projects are successfully executed," said Tesei, a Republican, citing the MISA project as one of the major expenditures. "Everything has to be prioritized, and we would only commence projects at a time when the resources are available."

BET Chairman Michael Mason, also a Republican, agrees with Tesei about carefully weighing what the town decides to spend its money on.

"We said a $7 million capital project right now might not be the best time with the things we have over our head," he said. "That's going to be an enormous amount of work that's going on in the town and work that needs the resources to be able to manage all these projects."

"I am supportive of this project and want to build something we can all be proud of," Goldrick said.

Huffman added: "As far as I am concerned this is a worthy project."

But the two face an uphill battle against the majority of the BET, even as its leadership says the process is ongoing.

"We're trying to project a model that's in balance," Pellegrino said. "That said, the Budget Committee is still working with the administration, still working with the Department of Public Works and the Parks and Recreation Department to understand the scope of what they're proposing. That is still a discussion to be taken place."

A longtime champion of a new pool for the park, the Junior League of Greenwich is working with the town to move the project forward, though much work must still be done, said the organization's president, Emily Sternberg.

"This is something we are committed to, and we believe it will be an asset for the town and for the area," she said. "There still is a lot of work to see what the capacity of the site is."

The size and scope of the new pool project have not been finalized, said Sternberg, adding that her organization is working closely with Building Superintendent Alan Monelli.

The unfinished plan seemed to be a sticking point for some officials contacted by Greenwich Time.

"The understanding was that the Junior League was going to get more information and talk about whether it's viable going forward," said BET member Arthur Norton, a Republican.

Selectman David Theis said he also is in favor of the pool, but worries over the cost. If a smaller version of the pool is proposed, he said that may be another option for the town.

"I would love to see the pool project unfold in its original form," the Republican said. "However, in today's world, dollars are tight. If it has to be downsized, it has to be downsized."

Even strong supporters of the project, like Selectman Drew Marzullo, a Democrat, said there has to be careful consideration of how money is spent.

"I have been an outspoken advocate for a new pool in Byram, but we need to now look and move forward and evaluate capital expenses that need to be funded as a whole," he said.